World Bamboo Ambassador from Haiti Appointed

Please welcome Jane Wynne!

She says,

" “Bamboo will save Haiti.” This is what my father Victor Wynne used to tell us when I was ten years old. In 1961 he introduced ten species of bamboo of which Phyllostachys aurea has become naturalized in the region of Kenscoff. At the Wynne Farm Ecological Reserve, we promote bamboo for soil conservation in ravines. Presently, after hurricane Matthew, we surely recommend it as a wind breaker. During the embargo in 1992 we made bamboo pots, easels and crafts. That was our financial savior. An estimated 20 million trees are cut annually for charcoal which is the only source of fuel for most people. My vision is that bamboo will replace wood for making charcoal. I also hope that, one day, bamboo will be accepted by the population as a regular construction material, another main cause of deforestation. If more people are instructed on the rapid growth and endurance of bamboo it should be used in place of wood as a sustainable crop. As a result, trees with edible crops can be left alone to feed the population. Thus bamboo, in many ways, will surely save Haiti. "